Written Answers Friday 10 June 2005

Scottish Executive

Air Services

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on the volume of travellers between Scotland and the EU accession states; what action it has taken to promote new direct flights to these states, and what strategy it has for obtaining information on movements between these destinations and for providing direct flights.

Nicol Stephen: Direct air links between Edinburgh-Prague and Glasgow-Prague have already been established. Any approach by an airline to commence services from Scotland to the other EU accession states will be considered.

  In the 12 months to the end of March 2005, some 78,150 passengers travelled between Edinburgh and Prague while 71,133 passengers travelled between Glasgow and Prague. There is a mix of point to point services provided by Flyglobespan, and there are network services provided by CSA Czech Airlines to its hub in Prague. The CSA Prague hub provides onward services to many of the new entrant EU States as well as other Eastern European States.

  Information about the volume of travellers between Scotland and the EU accession states, particularly those in Central and Eastern Europe, is very limited. The Executive is, therefore, part funding a detailed survey of the main Scottish airports which is being conducted by the Civil Aviation Authority during 2005. The survey will cover a wide range of issues including the origin of the traveller as well as the reason for travel, and the results will lead to a better understanding of the potential for the development of new routes.

Asylum Seekers

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, with reference to the letter of 16 May 2005 to me from the Minister for Communities which states inter alia "You queried the applicability of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 to children in Dungavel. The Act does not apply to Dungavel Immigration Removal Centre as immigration is the responsibility of the Home Office", whether chapter 3 of the act and, in particular, section 52, relating to children requiring compulsory measures of supervision and referrals under the act to the Principal Reporter to the Children’s Panel, do not apply to those children and, if so, when this interpretation was adopted.

Euan Robson: In his letter of 16 May the Minister for Communities said that the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 did not apply to Dungavel Immigration Removal Centre as immigration is the responsibility of the Home Office. The terms of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 do apply to the children of asylum seekers in Scotland, wherever they are located, except where disapplied by UK legislation.

  The Minister for Communities wrote to you again on the 6 June to clarify his original letter.

  The welfare of persons detained in Dungavel is a matter for the Home Office, and it is for them to respond to questions about the operation of the Immigration Removal Centre.

Children and Young People

Richard Lochhead (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-16376 by Euan Robson on 19 May 2005, whether it plans to carry out any studies on the effects on children of exposure to advertising and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Euan Robson: The Scottish Executive is not currently planning to undertake any studies of the effects of exposure to advertising on children. However, work is currently in hand on an Executive-commissioned study to establish the nature and extent of commercial activity in schools in order to develop the evidence-base for future policy making.

Concessionary Travel

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-13270 by Nicol Stephen on 24 January 2005, whether there are costs relating to the Smartcards other than those stated in that answer and, if so, what these other costs are and what the total cost is of the Smartcard scheme including all categories of costs.

Nicol Stephen: In addition to the costs set out in my answer to question S2W-13270, we estimate that the cost of the Smartcards themselves including distribution will be of the order of £3.6 million.

European Funding

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to use European structural funds to upgrade further education facilities in the south of Scotland.

Allan Wilson: The Executive is committed to providing modern high-quality education facilities to encourage people to take up the development opportunities offered by our lifelong learning agenda. This will provide a sound basis to stimulate economic growth and tackle problems associated with exclusion. I can report that I have approved substantial funding to assist in the relocation of the Borders College. An award of up to £2,821,568 will be made from the European Regional Development Fund to assist in the provision of a modern facility in new build at, and the refurbishment of part of the Heriot-Watt University campus at Netherdale, Galashiels. The application also involves the creation of a new Community Learning Centre in Hawick which will replace the existing Henderson Building and include the Knitwear Design and Technical Centre.

External Relations

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what effect the Friends of Scotland initiative has had on immigration to Scotland.

Mr Tom McCabe: The network of Global Friends and its complementary website help to promote Scotland as an attractive place in which to live, work, study, visit, invest and do business. It is not the specific aim of the Global Friends of Scotland initiative to encourage immigration. The Fresh Talent initiative aims to attract bright, hard-working and motivated individuals to live, work and study in Scotland. Details of how the Fresh Talent initiative plans to evaluate its overall success are given in the answer to question S2W-16982 on 6 June 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

  http://www.scottish.parliament/webapp/wa.search.

External Relations

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what effect the Friends of Scotland initiative has had on the understanding of Scotland around the world.

Mr Tom McCabe: Members of the Global Friends of Scotland network help to promote Scotland as an attractive place in which to live, work, study, visit, invest and do business. The complementary website, which acts as a dynamic showcase for the best that Scotland has to offer the world, is accessed by a largely international audience. At least 75% of the readership is based overseas. Visitors spend around 25 minutes on the site.

External Relations

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how the Friends of Scotland initiative has encouraged friends of Scotland around the world to become actively involved with modern Scotland.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Global Friends of Scotland initiative has supported a number of network projects around the world and across a wide range of activities. These range from the publication of articles overseas to assisting a youth football exchange, providing support in setting up student exchanges and in organising Scottish Weeks to promote Scotland’s place in the world. In addition, Global Friends are updated regularly about contemporary Scotland’s strengths through newsletters and information posted on their exclusive area within the website.

Health

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what immediate advice or guidance it will provide to NHS Fife to help it shape its Right for Fife strategy in light of the recommendations in the Kerr report.

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what advice or guidance it will provide to NHS Forth Valley to help it shape its review of health services in light of the recommendations in the Kerr report.

Mr Andy Kerr: I welcomed the vision outlined in the Kerr report in my statement to Parliament on 25 May. The Scottish Executive is currently considering the report in detail and has no plans to issue immediate advice or guidance. The Executive’s response to the report will help to shape NHS boards’ strategies in the future and a detailed implementation plan will be presented to Parliament in due course. In the meantime, it is expected that all NHS boards will take account of the report’s recommendations when planning services and implementing service change strategies.

Health

Carolyn Leckie (Central Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what input private sector organisations and individuals had into the Kerr report.

Mr Andy Kerr: Building a Health Service Fit for the Future is the product of the collective effort of over two hundred individuals who sat on Professor Kerr’s national advisory group or one of the group’s work-streams, as listed in Appendix 2 of the Kerr report. None of these individuals represented private sector organisations.

  Professor Kerr’s group looked at a number of international healthcare providers for examples of best practice, this inevitably included both public and private healthcare providers. Various pieces of work were also commissioned from academics on issues such as the affordability of the report’s vision, integration within health care systems, and the relationship between volumes of a particular procedure and outcomes.

Health

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it has taken following Professor James McEwen’s review of the provision of chronic pain services.

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will review the plans of NHS boards to implement the recommendations of Professor James McEwen’s review of the provision of chronic pain services.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Executive has made Professor McEwen’s report available to NHS boards and will be convening a conference to discuss best practice on pain management on 8 July 2005. Boards will we asked to report on their responses to the McEwen report in advance of the conference, and to send representatives.

Health

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how it intends to review the delivery across Scotland of the recommendations of Professor James McEwen’s review of the provision of chronic pain services.

Mr Andy Kerr: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-16988 on 10 June 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Health

Richard Lochhead (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many training places for (a) speech and language therapists and (b) physiotherapists there are currently and have been in each of the last three years.

Mr Andy Kerr: Information on the number of training places available in physiotherapy and speech and language therapy is set out in the following table:

  

 
2002
2003
2004
2005*


Physiotherapy
191
192
196
187


Speech and Language Therapy
76
86
92
96



  Notes: *Estimates.

Health

Richard Lochhead (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average number of applicants is for each place available on (a) speech and language therapy, (b) orthotics and (c) physiotherapy courses.

Mr Andy Kerr: On average there are nine applicants for each place available on speech and language therapy, three applicants for each place on orthotics and 10 applicants per place for physiotherapy.

Higher Education

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of Scottish graduates who graduated in each year since 1999 are still resident and working in Scotland.

Mr Jim Wallace: I refer you to the answer to question S2W-16973 on 8 June 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Local Government Finance

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what estimate it has made of the cost of storm damage to public and private property in the January 2005 hurricane in the (a) Western Isles, (b) Highland, (c) Orkney Islands and (d) Shetland Islands local authority areas and in the rest of Scotland.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Scottish Executive has made no such estimate. The Executive is in discussion with Comhairle nan Eilean Siar about the council’s planned recovery package following the January 2005 storm which relates to infrastructure repair costs and the costs of certain infrastructure improvements. The Executive is also expecting claims from Highland Council and Orkney Islands Council for emergency financial assistance under the terms of the Bellwin Scheme in connection with the storm. Even once concluded, however, these contacts would only enable a partial estimate of the overall cost of the storm damage to be made.

Local Government Finance

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will announce the financial package to repair and replace public property damaged in the January 2005 hurricane in the (a) Western Isles, (b) Highland, (c) Orkney Islands and (d) Shetland Islands local authority areas and in the rest of Scotland.

Mr Tom McCabe: Subject to on-going discussions between the Scottish Executive and Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, an initial announcement on the Executive’s contribution to a recovery package is planned for later this summer. Highland Council and Orkney Islands Council are planning to submit claims for emergency financial assistance under the terms of the Bellwin Scheme and any decision on the extent of any funding contribution from the Executive would have to await consideration of those claims. We are aware of no other claims in connection with the January 2005 storm.

NHS Funding

Mike Pringle (Edinburgh South) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive when it intends to issue advice to NHS boards in respect of their General Medical Services budgets.

Mr Andy Kerr: The budget for General Medical Services for 2005-06 has been set and NHS boards were issued with their allocations on 7 June 2005.

Rail Network

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to develop a parkway station at Musselburgh and what information it has regarding possible passenger use and cost.

Nicol Stephen: The Scottish Executive does not have plans to develop a parkway station at Musselburgh and has not therefore explored possible passenger use and cost. The business case for any such proposals should be made in the first instance by local promoters rather than the Executive.

Rail Services

Alasdair Morgan (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the estimated annual monetary value will be to First ScotRail of reduced discounts, which are given to season ticket holders as a result of failure by ScotRail to meet its punctuality targets, following the introduction of the planned two-minute addition to journey times of Fife to Edinburgh services.

Nicol Stephen: Discounts to First ScotRail passengers in Fife, which are paid under the Passengers Charter, will only reduce when punctuality levels of 87% are reached across the relevant group of services.

  In order to achieve this saving, First ScotRail will need to bring about significant improvement over a number of months to the punctuality of the east service group of which Fife services form part and which also includes services to Bathgate, Dunblane, Newcraighall and North Berwick. It is highly unlikely that this level of improvement could be achieved solely by increasing Fife service journey times.

Roads

Mr John Swinney (North Tayside) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it is planned to improve the Kindallachan junction on the A9.

Mr John Swinney (North Tayside) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what development work it has undertaken on improving the Kindallachan junction on the A9.

Nicol Stephen: The A9 Kindallachan junction improvement, which will provide a right turn facility, is programmed for construction in 2006. The scheme is currently being designed by BEAR Scotland Ltd.

Transport

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on the number of people bound for (a) Scotland and (b) Edinburgh arriving in the United Kingdom by Eurostar in each year since 1999.

Nicol Stephen: The Scottish Executive has no information on the number of people bound for (a) Scotland and (b) Edinburgh arriving in the United Kingdom by Eurostar in each year since 1999.